y, the True Ornament and Dignity of Woman. | 
DELIVERED IN CONNEXION WITH - Pi Se: 
PeeUNE.2eTHissy, | oe 


BY A. J. BATTLE. 


MARION, ALA. 
oy PRINTED BY DENNIS DYKOUS. ; es 
Bee 2 1857. oe oe a 


fes> This discourse is published by the joint request of the Young Ladies 


of “the Judson,” their parent$and friends. 


A SERMON. 


P She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace; a crown of glory shall 
she deliver to thee —Proverss LV, 19. ; 

The illustrious donor, whose munificence is here celebrated, 
is no other than Wisdom And Wisdom is but the fynonym 
of Piety—that divine principle, which, infused into the soul, 
prompts it to love and fear God, and to consecrate its powers 
to his service. The design of a inspired oracle, here, is to 
recommend this celestial Wisdom, on the ground of “Superior 
advantages she confers on her votaries. “She shall give to 
thine head an ornament of grace; a crown of glory shall ‘she 
deliver to thee.” 

The religion of the Bible draws its most solemn and impres- 
sive motives from a future life. It was revealed to man in 
order to prepare him for an endless state, to which the present 
is a brief preparatory period; to teach him so to live, that 
when his probation here shall have been ended, he may enter 
the eternal habitations of the blessed. And, hence, it is not 
only man’s highest duty, but his most vital interest to embrace 
the religion of the Gospel. To refuse it, were not only to 


4 PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 


rebel against God, but to bring upon his own head overwhelm- 
ing destruction. But Piety not, only confers the matchless 
blessings of eternal life, but bestows the highest temporal 
rewards, upon those who tread her lovely path. An Apostle 
assures us, that ‘Godliness is profitable for the life that now 
is, and for that which is to come.” Our blessed Redeemer 
encourages us to become his deciples with the unequivocal 
pledge, that no man who choseth His service with all its 
sacrifices shall fail to “receive manifold more in the present 
time, and, in the world to come, life everlasting,” : 

Thus, in whatever view we contemplate the influence of — 
Piety upon. the well-being of its possessor, we shall find it an 
object worthy of our noblest aspirations. If it brought no 
present advantages, its eternal rewards should excite our 
| deepest concern, and if the future were a blank, its superior 
temporal benefits would entitle it to an exalted place in our 
regard. But since, both in time and eternity, it secures the 
greatest good for its possessors, no reasonable helng can. 
esteem it of trifling value. 

Our purpose, on this occasion, is, to present some of the 
rewards which Wisdom bestows in this life, upon those who 
choose her “ways of pleasantness.” We shall especially 
recommend this Wisdom, or Piety, to the youthful females of 
this assembly, and more particulary to the young ladies of the 
Judson Female Institute. ) 

The connexion in which our text occurs, shows that its 
language—though penned by Solomon—is but a reproduction 
of the wholesome counsel he had received, in his youth, from 
his father David, the royal Psalmist of Isreal. The passage, 


4 


aT. we 


peer 


PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. ou 


indeed, is especially applicable to the young. The imagery 
which adorns it, is of a nature adapted to attract the attention 
of youth, while the important truth it conveys commends 
itself with peculiar impressiveness to those who are in the 
morning of life. 

A brief analysis of the passage hefire us, will preprare our 
minds for the theme of our discourse. 

“She shall give to their head an ornament of grace.” 
Head ornaments have been, in all ages, fashionable articles of 
female attire. Not only are the finest taste and art laid 
under contribution to arrange the long and_ profuse hair, 
which nature has made the glory of woman, but various 
artificial contrivances are employed to set off the natural 


charms to advantage, From the richly plaited and _pearl- 


strung tresses of the luxurious Hast, in ancient times to the 
modern Oriental talpock and turban: from the tawdry plumes 
and tassels of a rude society, to the aspiring accumulations of 
a fast generation and even to the elaborate braids and flowing 
ribbons of the present day, head-dresses have ever been 
acknowledged to enhance the natural attractiveness of the 
person. We learn, then, from this portion of the text, that 
Piety will render its possessor LovELY and ATTRACTIVE. 

‘A Crown of glory shall she deliver to thee.” The crown 


igs an indispensable accompaniment of royalty. It is the 


symbol of majesty, of dignity. When, therefore, the sacred 
oracle foretells the presentation of “a crown of glory,” the 
obvious interpretation of its utterance is, Piety will impart 
dignity to the person and character of its possessor.’ As the 
crowned queen is an object of homage and admiration to her 


6 PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 


— — ee 


subjects, so she, whose brow is encircled with the radiant 
diadem of celestial wisdom, shall command respect and win 
honor from all within her influence. 

We now proceed to commend to you, Prery, THE TRUE 
ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 

It is no longer a question, whether woman should be educa- 
ted. It is no-longer doubted that she is endowed with an 
intellect, capable of indefinite expansion and improvement. 
All admit, that she possesses a mind stamped with the likeness 
of Deity—‘‘a mind formed of the finest mould and wrought 
for immortality ; ” that she has a high and holy mission to 
fulfil, which requires for success something more than mere 
superficial adornment ; that she is capable of an influence, that 
demands for its safe direction, the most careful and finished - 
training of her intellectual powers. | 

Then let her be educated—educated to the extent of her 
capacity. Let us elevate the present standard. Let our Fe 
male Institutions be so endowed, as to afford the amplest 
facilities for the highest order of mental training. But let 
us not stop here. In educating her mind, let us not forget her 
heart. Exclusive culture of the intellect, the moral nature 
being overlooked, or improperly directed, is to be feared 
rather than encouraged; it is, in the last degree, perilous to the 
best interests of the individual and of society. Genius, no 
matter how brilliant or commanding, if devoid of correct 
moral principle, Samson-like, will drag ruin upon itself and 
upon all within its influence—or rather Phaeton-like, aspires 
to guide the chariot of the Sun, but, in its weakness and 
infatuation, sets the universe on fire. InteHect is the centri- 


PLETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. ( 


RE ee ee 


oo 


fugal force of the moral world, which, unchecked by some 
gravitating power, rushes onward with the impetuosity and 
eccentricity of the comet, yet with more disastrous results ; 
but restrained by the central force of religious virtue, like the 
harmonious play of the planetory spheres, preserves @ nice 
and well adjusted equilibrium. Let but the rising youth of 
these States be taught to admire only the embellishments of 
the understanding, to seek for only literary or intellectual 


pre-eminence, and no care be taken to instill principles of 


religion—the truths of the Bible—and the schools of learning, 
which are the appropriate boast of the present day, will prove 
so many festering ulcers upon the surface of the body politic. 
The dire scenes of France, during the reign of Terror, would 
be re-enacted on your happy shores; Peace, Virtue and Hap- 


piness would flee from your firesides, with Religion from 


your altars; a horror of great moral darkness would brood 


over your land, and your fair domain would be drenched in the 
blood of brethren. This is no ideal picture. History has 
shown it to be a terrible reality. Such, the past has proved 
to be the baleful fruits of mere refinement of manners without 
moral culture,. such the disastrous workings of intellectual 
education unchecked by the balance-wheel of religious virtue. 

Tf this be true in history, where men are the prominent 


.. actors: inasmuch as women are the springs of a most 


i 


i 


wonderful influence; as they watch over and nourish the first 


germs of youthful genius, and direct its subsequent growth 
and developement; as they by a silent witchery, control some 


of the most important thoughts and actions of men, and thus, 
indirectly, mould the character of a nation, we have an 


. 


s 


8 PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 


overwhelming argument, a fortior?, for the religious education 
of our daughters. 

Besides, it has been remarked, that the soul of man is 
characterized by the supremacy of intellect, while that of 
woman is marked by the predominance of the moral powers: 
If this distinction be admitted, how weighty is the responsibil- 
ty of those to whom her education is entrusted! ‘Then give to 
her the most finished course of mental training ; let her mind 
be elevated and invigorated by communion with the master- 
geni of every age, and stored with the richest treasures of 


science and literature; let her manners be refined by every © 


innocent embellishment of art; but above all, let her soul be 
taught to reverence the Deity; to delight in communion with 
the pure, the holy, the spiritual; to find expression in modest 
exercise of Christain charity—in a word, let her intellectual 
attainments and personal accomplishments be tempered and 
chastened bythe graces of unaffected Christian piety; and 
there is no sphere, to which she may lawfully aspire, that she 
will not adorn and enoble. 

A consideration of the effects of piety upon the character 
will verify the statement of the heavenly oracle, and show 
that it does “give to the head an ornament of grace.” 

1. It elevates the affections. It is to these, that religion ad- 


dresses its most powerful appeals. It arrests the tendency 
of the heart to love what is base, sensual and groveling, and 
teaches it to place its affections upon things above. It purges 
the breast of low propensities and brutish appetites, and calls 


into exercise the holiest and purest emotions of the soul. It 
inculeates, first and supremely, love to God—the source of 


oe 


Ss le 
a 
%; 
me 
54 
aS 


PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 9 
all purity and goodness—and second only to that, love to all 
mankind. It bids us honor parents, cherish kindred, obey 
laws and do good to men. It lifts our hopes to a glorious 
world beyond these terrestrial shades, where the redeemed 
soul shall enjoy serene and perfect bliss; and all along this 


_ path of life it urges us to press onward to that goal. With 


motives, sanctions and hopes like these, can the heart under 


the influence of piety, become the slave of base desires 
and appetites? Rather will it not rise superior to the lower 


regions of sense, and seek the purer air and the holier 
eompanionship of spiritual natures ? 

2. But piety has its effect upon the intellect. The inspired 
author of the Psalms asserts, that the entrance of God’s word 
into the mind giveth light; that the testimony of the Lord 


maketh wise the simple.” We believe this to be true, even in 
the lowest or least spiritual sense. We believe the intellect is 


enobled and strengthened Igy the inspiration of heavenly 
Wisdom. We do not assert that piety changes radically the 


~ mental constitution, transforming the idiot mind into the far- 
reaching genius: but by giving a salutary direction to the 


powers, and, especially, by presenting the purest and most 
sublime subjects of thought, it developes and expands these 
powers, for fulfilling the highest ends of their creation. The 


"intellect thus invigorated, under the influence of a heart 


purified and elevated,—as I have described—will exert. itself, 


+ for the production of the noblest and most worthy efforts. Its 
: own creations will be characterized by a purity, a truthfulness 


and a healthy vigor, which cannot fail to charm all lovers of 


“the true, the beautiful and the good.” 
a 


10 PirTy, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 


8. Again, Piety inculcates the obligation to aim at “what- 
soever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatso- 


ever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever. 


things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report;”’ 


and ‘‘if there be an yy virtue, any praise,” it bids us love and 


practise them. Hence Piety has the effect to sweeten the 


temper, and to promote true refinement of taste, feeling and 


manner. The eminent Christian woman can never descend 
to the waspishness and petulance of the shrew, to the coarse- 
ness of the Amazon, nor to the imprudence of the romping 


hoiden. She has no ambition to be classed among the “ strong-. 


minded women,” who unsex and degrade themselves, by their 
boisterous assumption of man’s prerogatives and responsibilities. 


ad 


But with a cheerful temper, she blends gentle forbearance and | 


a modest dignity of deportment, as free from masculinity, on 
the one hand, as from childishness and imprudence, on the 
other. In a word, the truly pious woman, accustomed to the 
contemplation of the beautiful virtues, recommended by the 
Apostle, in the passage just quoted, becomes assimulated in 


feeling and manner to the Scripture models of excellence 
which Sse is taught to admire. 


Thus is formed a symmetrical and well developed character. 


With a mind thoroughly cultivated by study, under the guid- 


ance of affections purified and elevated by communion with — 


the holy and heavenly, with sweet and gentle dispositions, 


with refined taste and manners, have we not a combination of ' 


all that 1s lovely and admirable in character? View woman, 
thus educated and sanctified, in any fitting relation, and her 
dignity shines in resplendent lustre, winning admiration and 
exacting homage. 


eee 


PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 11 


pA ape 


(Z Let us regard her, first, in her appropriate dominion, a 
realm all her own, where she sits enthroned, a queen with 
more than queenly power; that little world, where purity and 
innocence, affection and confidence dwell. Home is woman’s 
true sphere. For this, the Creator endowed her with those 
delicate, yet powerful moral instincts, which enable her to wield 
- 80 irresistible an influence. Here it is, that she stamps the 
first ineffaceable impression upon the soul, and, as with plas- 
tic art, moulds the character of the future man. . Here it is, 
that she gives the first inspiration to the genius of the philoso- 
 pher, and implants the generous purpose in the heart 
F of the patriot and philanthropist. It is here she teaches 
_ the infant heart to love, and the infant tongue to lisp, the 
% name of the great Creator, and communicates the the impulse 
which ripens into the consecration of the Gospel minister. 


G and by grace in the school of celestial Wisdom, has underta- 
_-ken the noble task! With a mind trained to think, to judge, 


_ to direct, to command; with intelligence to devise prudent yet 
liberal counsels ; ONS a strength of moral principle, which 


triumphs over the promptings of mere worldly ambition, while 
it shrinks from no responsibility; and with unshaken faith in 
the teachings of inspired truth, her power is unlimited for 
4 the achievement of the greatest results. There is no station, 
4 9 which woman may be called, fraught with a more exalted 
j dignity, than that of the educated Christian mother. Not 
j Semiramis, with her absolute power and untold wealth; not 
Zenobia, with her majestic beauty and heroic energy; not 


| What a position of honorable influence! And how lovely a 
_ is she, who, fitted by culture in the school of earthly science, 


12 PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN, 


Elizabeth, with her queenly prestige, her splendid pageants, 
her masculine talents, her court of brilliant wits and statesmen, 
may claim the meed of true nobility, which the world accords 
to the mother of the great Washington. Though not skilled 
in the learning of the schools, she had acquired by reading 
_ and observation a store of valuable knowledge, and her mind 

was invigorated by a rigid and wholesome system of self-dis- 
cipline. Her soul was imbued with reverence for God, and 
kindled with a lively faith in the religion of the Saviour. 
Thus cultured,*thus sanctified, she nursed the years of the 
youthful Washington, and, together with an ardor for hiberty, 
she instilled that love of country, which is ever the spirit of 
enlightened Christianity, and inspired that respect for truth, 
justice, honor and religion, which has made him the first of - 
heroes and statesmen, and rendered the name of the Pater 
patriz venerable and immortal. 

The grace and accomplishments of the Miletan enchantress 
fascinated the courtly Pericles, and even charmed away from 
his chosen rugged path, the stern and philosopic Socrates. 
The conquerors of, the world lured by the Egyptian Siren, 
forgot their ambition and their schemes of conquest, and 
surrendered themselves willing captives to the chain of profli- 
gate beauty. The votaries of learning have ever applauded 
the extraordinary acquirements of queen Christina, wno, 
amid the care and engagements of government, stored her 
mind with vast treasures of lore. ‘The lovers of romance ard 
accustomed to extol the sublime enthusiasm, the patriotic - 
ardor, the undaunted courage of Joan of Arc. 


But the the unrivalled charms of Aspasia and Cleopatra 


pas ee Pi, aed oe Ea eee 


PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT “AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 18 


have not blinded the world to their real merits, associated, as 
those attractions were, with so much profligacy of manners, 
Posterity has long ago pronounced judgment upon the charac- 
ter of the celebrated daughter of the great Gustavus, whose 
profound erudition was allied with so much unwomanish feel- 
ing and conduct. We have, long since, ceased to be moved by 
encomiums upon the patriotism and lofty daring of the intre- 
pid Maid of Orleans. But! wherever from the heart of 


_ humanity pining under chains, there palpitates forth upon the 


air a single sigh for freedom; wherever the heel of the tyrant 
has been raised from the neck of the oppressed; wherever 
liberal institutions are prized; wherever the influence of our 
beloved country has been felt in disenthralling, comforting, 


| elevating and christianizing man; there will be loved and 

honored and revered the pure and sacred name of Mary 
Washington. \ 

a sae 


| It is in the sanctuary of Home, that woman appears most 
lovely, and her dignity shines in peerless radiance: as the 
Mother, traming her. children to love truth and honor, to 
yalue integrity, to scorn meaness, to conquer passion, to 


respect religion and laws, to reverence and worship the Deity ; 


as the Wife—not, as Irving remarked, “the mere dependent 


and ornament of man in prosperity’’—but his friend and coun- 


_sellor, by a congeniality of taste arid sentiment sharing his 
‘intellectual recreations, his stay and solace in adversity. 
encircling his years with the halo of love, confidence, sym- 
. pathy and the resources of a well-stored mind; as the Matron, 


presiding with dignified grace, swaying the sceptre of impartial 


but gentle authority over the household, enlivening the circle 


14 PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND: DIGNITY OF WOMAN, 


ne 


of her guests with the charms of her refined conversation, and 
winning all hearts by her modest yet genial hospitality. The 
influence of such a woman, though she may never appear 
without the precints of domestic retirement, is far more 
blessed and far more truly noble, than the power and renown © 
of the imperial Eugenie.) Then for this lofty dignity, ‘how 
shall the lovely daughters of the land be fitted; but Rpsecking 
not only literary but religious instruction; by cultivating that 
Wisdom which shall set the “ornament of grace,’ and the 

“crown of glory’’ upon the head of the humble disciple of 
Jesus ? 

2. But the influence of woman is not restricted to the cir-- 
cumscribed area of domestic life; it is felt throughout the 
broad and complicated framework of Society. The social 
position of woman in different ages and among different people, | 
forms one of the most curious portions of history. In one 
place, she is represented as degraded toa level with the beasts 
of burden; in another consigned to voluptuous apartments of 
the Harem; now trampled on, and made to feel the bitterest 
wrongs of human tyranny; anon transformed into a goddess, 
to win whose smile the brave cavalier would dare the greatest 
perils. But neither in degradation, nor luxury, neither in 
bondage, nor as the idol of chivalry does she find her appro- 
priate sphere. 

Christianity has solved the problem. The Bible asserts’ 
woman’s true dignity and determines her proper social rank, 
when it represents her as man’s co-ordinate, his counterpart, 
necessary to the symmetry, the equilibrium of society. She 
is not his competitor, not his rival. Her feminine nature is 


‘PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 15 


ee i Pe 
eerie. a 2 


? 


ill-adapted to contend as man’s equal in arms, in the fierce, | 
rude struggles of life. Her office is rather that of guardian 
angel—or, as the Bible terms it, his “ help-meet”—to nerve 
him in the hour of conflict, to cheer him when the contest is 
fiercest and the cloud lowers darkest, to support the drooping 
head, to bind up the broken heart; and when the storm of 
war has gone, and the sun of prosperity illumines his path, it 


 _ is her’s to walk by his side, and, bythe benign influence of 
her example, her smile, her counsels and her prayers, to soften 
the asperities of his nature, and win him to rectitude, to 
happiness and to heaven. It is hers to refine, to elevate and 
to save. : id 
How beautiful is such a charater, and how moraly sublime 


hie pea a kee 
a aa rs 


such a mission! How do we love and honor woman, in thig 
a her appropriate sphere. But when she thrusts herself into 
m+ the dusty hippodrome of manly competition; when she prefers 
her claim to the rostrum, the senate or the pulpit; when she 
a throws off the veil of modesty so becoming her nature, and 
a appears among the noisy rabble and the vulgar declaimers of 
7 the hustings, we. turn from the spectacle in ineffable disgust. 
We must tell her, the Bible forbids it; common sense disal- 
lows it; her own feminine instincts. must rise in irrepressible 
. revolt against so gratuitous a prostitution of herself. It 
is a triumphant commentary upon the excellence of our chris- 
tianity, that the apologists of such an outrage upon the best 
and purest feelings of the heart, are in general, infidels and 
blasphemers, who scruple not to trample under foot, the 
volume of Divine Truth. With a mind cultivated and inform- | 
ed, with a conscience enlightened by celestial Wisdom, with a | 


16 pintY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN: 


ee 


heart refined by touches of the Holy Spirit, there can be no 
fear, that woman will so far forget her obligations to God, her 
duties to herself and society as thus deliberately to degrade 
herself. 

But an error scarcely less unbecoming, and more fatal, 1s 
that of those who regard woman as a butterfly, to flit before 
the eyes of men, and, by the gorgeous glitter of her wings, 
dazzle, for a moment, the sight, but leave no good or perma- 
nent impression. She was not formed to chatter nonsense 
with brainless fops, or to amuse the vanity of pedants, who 
iaaeine they honor her by condescending to converse with ~ 
her. | And she, whose time and thoughts are engrossed with 
the ails of the toilet, whose whole ambition is to lead in 
fashion, to shine in the ball-room and to excel in the flippant 
conversation prevalent there, has no just idea of the noble 
end for which she was created, and renders herself only 
disgusting in the eyes even of those she strives so much to 
captivate. |Woman’s mission is far more truly great, and her 
influence should be far more beneficent. Her mission is, by 
a virtuous and pious example—shedding upon her~ pathway 
the lustre of Christian devotion and benevolence, by her intel- 
ligent conversation, her pure and refined manner, her omnipo- 
tent smile, bestowed only on the deserving, to throw her 
allpowerful influence into the scale of morals, and thus to 
purify the tone of society. Woman has a place in society— 
aye, she has a power; and this when rightly wielded is 
noiseless as the zephyr, but resistless as. the tornado.| The 
poet was right, when he represented the world asa arre 4 
and man a sighing hermit, until Woman smiled. But men 


vey 


PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WomMAN. 17 


ORR RRR RRR RR ARAL AL AN AA AAR AR ARIA OO RRR A RRA AN AAR 


will not worship a picture; they will not yield homage toa 
statue, though of the most exquisite mould and delicate work: 
manship. Personal attractions may ravish, for a moment, but 
they cannot bind the captive. ‘To secure a permanent in- 
fluence, the mind must be cultivated, and to render that 
influence beneficent, every power and every accomplishment 


must be chastened by the spirit of Christian piety. With this 


ornament, woman will always be loved and admired—-though 


her charms of form and feature be few; so true it is, that 
Piety imparts loveliness and dignity to its possessor. 

& And yet, it isa lamentable truth, that puissant as is thé 
sway of Woman in society, her influence is often perverted. 
Hspecially in the fashionable circles of our cities, there is 
exerted an influence most pernicious to morals, by many, whose 
wealth and accomplishments give them a commanding position. 
Their corrupt manners, their sneers at religion, their smiles 
lavished chiefly upon the foppish, the intemperate, the dissolute, 


4 all tend to bring morals into contempt and to degrade the 


° 
3 
- 


tone of socity. How many an inebriate, perhaps, encountered 


his first temptation in the richly furnished drawing-room, 
where the ‘yine-cup sparkled in the hands of the fair, whose 


_Intoxicating charms made him an easy captive to the fatally 


intoxicating liquid! How many a susceptible youth has been 


lured into the dangerous maelstrom of gaming, by the card 


table of fashion, where beautiful and accomplished ladies set 
the baneful example! I verily believe that a universal frown 
from the sex, upon these ruinous vices of intemperance and 


_ gambling, would be more effectual to banish them from the 
‘ land, than all the efforts of benevolent associations, aided by the 


2 
o 


a" 


et 


18 pteTy, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 


strong arm of the law. There can be no doubt, that one of 
the most potent instrumentalities for the abatement of social 
vices, and the expurgation of society is the Christian education 
of our daughters. 
Then let us properly fit them for this field of lofty enter- 
prise. Let us so train them, that they will be “refined and pure 
in manners, their minds stored with useful knowledge, their 
imaginations regulated, capable of appreciating the wonders 
of nature, and the rich treasures of science and literature; 
with hearts softened by piety and minds purified by religious 
knowledge:’”’ ‘Thus disciplined, though she may not preside — 
at the helm of State, it will be Woman’s nobler task to direct; 
like the mild and radiant pole-star, the course of the daring 
voyager; though she may not enjoy the elective franchise, she 
may exercise the greater power of silently influencing the 
suffrage of electors, for the elevation of only the trustworthy 
and the moraly noble; though she may not ascend the pulpit, 
nor assume to be the religious | guide of the age, she may, in 
the Church; by a modest Christian conversation and charity, 


{ 


sustain her part as one of “the lights of the world.’’,. While 


«om ner 


the frivolous maiden is listening to the compliments with which 


heartless flatterers regale her ear; while the woman of fashion 


and of the world showers her favors on worthless sycophants, 
or poisons the minds of virtuous youth; while the flippant 
gossip 1s retailing small-talk and circulating slander; the cul: 
tivated Christian lady, in the exercise of her retiring ministry, 
is purifying, humanizing and elevating society. If a position 
is dignified in proportion to its influence and usefulness, 
there is no office more worthy of admiration and profound 


= =a 


PIETY, THE TRUE GRNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 19 


a a 


respect, than that of educated, sanctified Woman in society, 
\ What though her ministry be quiet and unobtrusive; what 
though she be not constantly exposed to the gaze of the great 
rude world, and her name be not borne upon the breath of the 
noisy rabble; her power is not the less felt, her dignity is not 
the less exalted. \ The analogies of nature prove, that those 
causes in the phyiscal world, which produce the greatest 
results, are the most nciseless and imperceptible in their oper- 
ation. The traveler on the banks of the Nile, views with 
admiration those imposing pyramids, which lifting their lofty 
summits in the desert, proclaim at once man’s greatness and 
his insignificance. And yet, how trifling appear these vast 
structures, monuments of human power and skill, beside those 
immense continents which have been silently reared in the 
ocean by the almost invisible coral. The colossal mountains, 
which here and there lift up their granite piles towards heaven, 
were upheaved by some sudden and terrific convulsion from 
the fiery heart of our planet. And yet, grand and imposing 
as they are, they are utterly insignificant in extent and utility, | 
- compared with the boundless areas of sedimentary rocks that 
- cover the earth, and which were formed by a silent and invisi- 
ble process, far down beneath deep waters. Who would com- 
pare the thundering mountain cataract, or even the rushing 
torrent of Niagara, with its ever-deafening roar, with that 
unseen influence which binds the myriad worlds of God’s 
Universe in eternal order? | If Woman’s influence is not con- 
spicuously wielded, it is no less mighty, and therefore, so far 
from promoting discontent or fostering indolence, the realiza- 
tion of this her silent power should stimulate her to duty, \ . 


a 


20 PIETY, THE FRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 


Oe eo 


while it enhances her loveliness and dignity. We would not 
subtract an iota from the well-earned fame of F lorence 
Nightingale, who braved difficulties and perils of a distant 
military camp, to releive and sSothe the sufferings of her gal- 
lant compatriots: but we submit, that the conduct of our 
countrywoman, Annie Andrews, was more heroic and more in 
keeping with her feminine nature, who quietly and alone, under- 
took a journey to a distant city, where in a fearfully infected 
atmosphere, she devoted herself night and day, to the task of 
mitigating the sufferings of the afflicted and ministering con- 
solation to the dying. | 

“3, But the loveliness and dignity of Woman appear, when 
we gonsider her in another most interesting relation—in a 
sphere to which she not only possesses an indefeasible title, . 
but in which she may put forth a potent agency for good. It 
is the field of Literature. ! 

The present age has become truly the era of Female 
Authorship-——of literate, if we may modify a term. The 
press teams, and the reading world is deluged with the pro- 
ductions of female writers, in every department of literature. 
‘And it cannot be denied that they have rendered essential ser- 
vice to the cause of truth and virtue. We cordially adopt the 
sentiment of the late John Wilson that ‘“‘ Woman’s genius loves 
to image forth what is good, that this is the blessing of her 
life, its greatest power, its brightest glory.” And it is only 
in the absence of that Piety which tempers the genius, and 
throws so soft a radiance upon all her efforts, that she ever 
appears unlovely and disgusting. 3 

We love to see her imagination, regulated by Piety, 


PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 21 


SS se Ls eee 


employed for the diffusion of truth and the elevation of 
her race. The fancy is ‘a vision and faculty divine,” and 
when iat oaed by religion is like a prism, which pure and 
transparent, instead of sdisige ing the sun’s rays, but reveals 
their gorgeous and latent beauties in the varied and lovely 
tints of the spectrum. The sanctified imagination presents 
truth, which naked might dazzle and drive away, by its too 
garish beams, transformed into the most beautiful rainbow hues. 

But we would not do woman the injustice to deny to her 
the possession of the more solid faculties of the mind, nor 
would we restrict her efforts to the region of fancy.. She has 
reasoning powers, which may be exercised for great and good 
purposes. Then let them be developed and strengthened and 
sanctified. ‘The world needs her aid. We consider her no 
less a necessity in this sphere, than in the others. | Ww hen we 
reflect that the general diffusi-n of education, the avulianliaae 
tion of writers and readers, are rendering the press a most 
formidable engine of, moral. power; and when we see the 
countless poisonous streams emanating from it, in the form of 
vicious novels and infidel essays, that go out to undermine 
virtue and polute society, the imperative obligation is felt to 
train the rising youth of the land not only. to stand proof 
against their evil influence, but to counteract it by themselves 
assuming the defence of religion and morality. Let us furn- 
ish our daughters, who, without compromising any of that 
delicacy so dear to woman, may enter this field, with weapons 
drawn from the armory of the Gospel. Many noble females 
have entered the list of religious literature and have worn its | 


laurels. ‘They consecrate their talents to the cause of God | 


22 PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN. 


and humanity, and while they have won a place on the roll of 
earthly fame, their noblest reward is, their ‘ names are writ- 
fen in heaven” and “their works do follow them.”’\ 

These thoughts conspire, with the interesting scenes and 
circumstances that surround me, to suggest a name, which 
combines in itself all that is beautiful in virtue, noble in deyvo- 
tion, heroic in action and suffering, brilliant in genius and 
dignified in character. Around this name, so redolent. with 
the fragrance of great deeds and sweet virtues, there cluster 
the holiest memories. These memories can’ never fade ; but 
in the breasts of thousands in this happy land, and among the 
spicy groves of India and among the saved in heaven, they 
will ever be sacredly cherished. That name has fired the 
holy zeal of many a noble spirit to consecrate its powers to 
_ the welfare of souls, and will continue to inspire the devotion 
and courage of the self-sacrificing and benevolent, 

“Till the Boodh shali fall, and Burmah’s sons 
Shall own Messiah’s sway.” 

| It is dear to you, my Christian brethren, and to you my 
young friends, and to many far away, who have received the 
benefits of the noble Institution which bears this honored 
name. - 7 

Tt has been adorned by three celebrated missionary heroines 
each one of whom, though possessed of str iking individuality, 
might form the most lovely model of female excellence.— 
Which shall we present, for your special imitation? If you 
seek one, who concentrates the attributes of genius with that 
greatness of soul which acts and suffers and overcomes all ob- 
stacles for the good of her race, we shall point you to 


PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT SND DIGNITY OF WOMAN, 23 


Ann Hassenrine Jupson, the first of the illustrious trio, the 
first of American female missionaries. If you look for quiet 
and modest worth, devotion to her husband and children, zeat 
in the greatest of causes, combined with unpretending yet 
eminent literary abilities, we shall find them to centre in 
Saran B. Jupson, the second wife of the world-renown mis- 
sionary. If we require the most amiable virtues of a wife and 
of a woman and the sweet graces of a Christian, blended in 
harmony with a bright poetic fancy and refined taste, we shall 
realize our desire in the person of the late Hminy C. JupDsoN, 
known to literary circles under the euphonious nomme de 
plume of Fanny Forrester. i 

With the merits of this writer, we are tempted to compare 
those of a recent popular authoress, who is suggested not less 
by the striking anthithesis in their characters than by the 
similarity of their pseudonyms. We refer to Fanny Fern. 
Gifted with a peculiarly versatile genius, now flashing with wit, 
now gleaming with sarcasm, anon melting into pathos, this 
writer is capable of short and brilliant excursions, but with 
not sufficient strength of wing to soar to distant heights.— 
With her peculiar qualities of style, she has succeeded in cap- 
tivating many young, inexperienced readers ; but the influence 
of her works is pernicious in the extreme, to those who are not 
penetrated with a thorough disgust. The absorbing themes 
_with her, are the tyranny of fathers and mothers and the 
infidelities of men. How an educated woman could so heart- 
lessly expose to public scorn the character of an aged parent, 
and the experience of her own unhappy marriage, is an enigma 


to be explained, only by the absence of religious principle. 


24 PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN: 


a a a a a Ee Se Or Ee OE OO IO Oe RE Oe Os 


She has never cultivated true Piety, and therefore, she wears 
no lovely ornament, tio crown of glory. 

How nobly contrasts with this, the character of Fanny 
Forrester. Both women of mental culture and_ superior 
accomplishments, the one was a gay and lieartless flirt; the 
other a high-toned, dignified and devoted Christian. \ The one 
is known as wielding a pen now gleaming with the keen point 
_ of biting satire, now dropping tenderness as honey, anon over- 
spreading her pages with the most gorgeous couleur de rose ; 
the other, charming and warning the heart, by the hues of her 
chastened imagination; infusing the spirit of devotion by ~ 
delicious strains of poetic melody, and elevating the heart, by 
the Christian loveliness reflected from her pages. | The one has 
devoted her brillant talents to the aspersion of her venerable 
father, insulting his gray hairs by a heartless exhibition of 
human frailty, and bringing reproach upon herself, by peevish 
allusions to the unfaithfulness of men. The other manifested 
her filial devotion, by one of the most touching poems in our 
language, and sacrificed the bloom of womanhood in the abodes 
of heathenism, to share the pious toils of the husband she 
dearly loved. No one can peruse a dozen pages of Fanny 
Fern, and allow himself to be affected by her spirit, without 
becoming more or less misanthropic. And no one can rise 
from the perusal of Mrs. Judson’s writings without an exalted, 
opinion of humanity, and without being himself a better man. \ 

The career of the former was like the meteor, brilliant but. 
brief and going out suddenly in the darkness; that of the 
other like the softer but more durable stellar light, which 
shines to brighten and bless our pathway through life. — 


eee THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WoMAN. 25 


- 


AAA AAA Ar IP PL Rt OPO PRI PAIR 


: We ee thus endeavored to exhibit to you the superior 
loveliness and dignity of educated sanctified woman, in her, 
relations to the home-circle, to Society and to Literature. 
The three wives of the great moral hero, whose name your 
beloved Institution bears, are beautiful exemplifications of 
well-developed character, in each of these spheres. Who 
would not prefer a position like theirs, to iM of the most fas- 
einating belle, or the most exalted queen 2 

_ Youhave heard, my young friends, of the extraordinary 
power, with which the Creator has endowed your sex. You 
have heard, how that influence may be exerted for the highest 
good of mankind, and how it may be prostituted to purposes, 
which shail result in individual and social disaster. You 
enjoy, in this Institution, peculiar advantages for that kind 
and degree. of intellectual culture, which shail prepare you for 
the responsible spheres, to which you may be called in life. 
By improving every advantage of mental developement here 
afforded, you will prepare yourselves for an almost boundless 
career of empire. Then embrace with ardor your golden 
_ privileges: store your minds with the priceless treasures of 
knowledge: labor to secure the proportionate developement - 
of the faculties, God has given you: byt above all, seck this 
Wisdom we have recommended to day; for “she shall give to 
thine head an ornament of grace; a crown of glory shall she 
deliver to the.” Learn to sit meekly, like Mary of Bethany, 
at the feet of your Saviour, and learn from the lips of the 
great Teacher of Righteousness, that most excellent of all 
Sciences, the plan of salyation. Then will your sway be as 
happy as it will be boundless, and you will enjoy a dignity far 

peor | 


26 PIETY, THE TRUE ORNAMENT AND DIGNITY OF WOMAN, 


ee nee ee ee a TS RN RRA, 


transcending that of thrones and sceptres. Study to imbue 


your minds with the spirit of the Bible, 
‘The spotless mirror of the mind of God,” 


that whether your ministry be exercised within the retired 
walks of Home-life, or you be called upon to act more con- 
spicuous parts.in society, or your brows be wreathed with the 
fadeless laurel, you may diffuse around you, that genial in 
fluence, which marks the true loveliness and dignity of educa- 
ted, sanctified Woman. 

We might urge this valuable possession of Wisdom, by other 


considerations of present advantagg We might show that, — 


in the language of a sweet female poet, 
‘Not Ophir’s gold 


Nor Ethiopia’s gems can match her price; 
And like the oil Klisha’s bounty blessed, 
Bhe is a treasure, which doth grow by use, 
- And multiply by spending. She contains 
Within herself the sum of excellence.” 


But let us, in one word, excite your ambition for those 
higher rewards, that Wisdom secures, when this world: shal} 
have passed away. “‘’Tis not the whole of life to life live;” 
and beyond these earthly scenes, there is life above, where 
God’s eternal presence is known and felt, “at whose right 
hand there is fullnéss of joy and pleasures forevermore.” 
Would you reach those sunny heights of bliss? Would you 
be forever with God and the angels and the spirits of the just 
made perfect? Would you all be beautiful as seraphs, and 
wear crowns of imperishable glory, like the angels? Oh then, 
seek and obtain this Wisdom—an interest in Christ, a spirit of 
consecration to his service; and you shall ‘shine as the stars 


forever and ever.” 


? 


realy 4 
ved 2, 


